Sometimes Talk Is Enough
by burnbabyburn123
Summary: OneShot. Tony had been left with a hard decision. Stay at NCIS or leave to go with Jeanne. This is the part that they didn't show you on screen, letting it been seen that Gibbs does care for his employee's. NoSlash. Hint of Tate, too.


A/N Yeah I know I have two stories currently going but this is just a short one-short I have on my computer. Might as well get it out in the open for you to, hopefully, enjoy. I felt sorry how nobody really consoled Tony is the brief time where he was making his decision and receiveing the card from Jeanne so I wrote that GIbbs did. :)

Enjoy.

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Gibbs opened the green door and slipped inside. His shoes were thrown off and bounced off the wall with a thud before landing on top of the other shoes in a semi-line. He shut the door with one last look outside at the dark stairway, usually illuminated by the moonlight… but not tonight. It was black, as dark as he felt when he thought back a few hours.

"Oh. Hey, boss." Tony stood in front of him, sporting a pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt that was clearly too big for him. A beer hung loosely in his right hand and a small smile adorned his facial features.

"Hey DiNozzo" Gibbs swept past him and into the kitchen, where he grabbed a bottle of the hidden Bourbon drink he fondly drank.

"What brings you here?" The two special agents walked into Tony's living room, a 40" inch plasma T.V on the wall, screening an old movie. The sound was turned down low.

"How are you doing?" Gibbs sidestepped the question with ease, not really surprising Tony to much.

"Not bad, thanks for asking boss." The answer almost seemed forced to Gibbs who took in Tony's happy face with interest.

DiNozzo was smiling slightly, eyes wide and only slightly unnerving. The hand that brought the beer bottle to his mouth hardly shook and his body posture seemed smooth and cocksure. A silence stretched and Gibbs shifted uncomfortably.

"Aw hell, DiNozzo." An unbelieving smirk planted itself on Gibbs mouth as he looked directly at Tony.

Tony, unable to keep the façade going in front of his boss, also shifted uncomfortably and sighing loudly. His smile had turned into a thinking one and his brow hung low. His hands began to shake again as he played with the bottle he still held onto, ripping off the label, and leaving behind a sticky mess. He finally looked up into the deep blue eyes of Gibbs and talked with sincerity.

"Truth be told, I've been better, boss."

"Has she spoken to you?" They both knew who 'she' was.

"Left me a card," He lifted a newspaper off the table to show a card hidden underneath. Lifting it up, he handed the card over to Gibbs, "Wants me to choose."

Tony kept on staring at the card and Gibbs read it and flipped to look at the front.

"S'nice of her." Gibbs spoke with extreme sarcasm.

"Thought this kind of stuff only happened in the movies," Tony took a large gulp of his beer, "but obviously not. I mean, it's not like I've had worse but I…I"

"You loved her." It was Gibbs turn to stare into the green eyes opposite him. Tony chuckled as if disbelieving.

"Something like that." Another gulp of beer was drunk. Another bout of silence hung around as both Special Agents sipped their drinks.

"How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard." Gibbs voice broke the silence whilst Tony looked at him shocked, mouth agape.

"What?" Tony was shocked at the words.

"Annie." DiNozzo shook his head in amusement before he stopped and thought about his next words.

"Is it always this bad, boss?"

"What? Annie?" That received a chuckle from Tony.

"No. Love."

"No, I don't think so."

"Then why is it always lost?"

"I'm not so sure it is."

"In two years, I've had one die and another run off... It may be just my thinking but it sure seems like it."

The confession didn't really surprise Gibbs to much. The underlying attraction had been there, it had just been a case of Rule #12 and the rules that Tony probably held in his hard head.

"Two years, two people, too many," Tony finally looked up at Gibbs and gave a tight brief laugh, "Hey there's a quote for you."

"Yeah there is. Why don't you write a book?" Gibbs attempted to lighten his Senior Field Agent's spirits slightly. Another laugh escaped Tony's mouth.

"Need to read one first, boss." He gave a slight wink at Gibbs. "And anyway, that's McGee's job…not mine. Did you ever finish that book by the way?"

"No. Never really got around to it." Gibbs had some more bourbon and let it tickle his throat before he swallowed.

"It's a good book. The ending 'sorter ruined it for me though." Tony shook his head in amazement. "He put that me and Ziva…" Tony looked awkwardly at Gibbs who stared with a black look back, "You know… did **IT**."

Whilst Gibbs resisted the urge to head-slap his agent across the head, he was slightly happier that Tony had gotten his mind off of Jeanne and instead had digressed.

"I thought you already have, DiNozzo."

"Nope. Just some brilliant press-ups on my part."

"I thought it lasted a bit too long." Tony held a hand to his chest in mock-hurt.

"That hurt, boss."

Tony scampered off to find some more drink for the two of them before he settled back down onto his soft couch.

"What did you do? I mean, when you lost…you know." Who would have thought Tony DiNozzo scrambling his words?

"I'll be truthful and say I almost ended it right there and then." A slight pause before Tony responded back.

"Ever regret not doing it?"

"Not at all, DiNozzo. If I had I wouldn't have met anyone I work with now."

"I suppose." Tony replied wistfully. Gibbs sighed and put down his glass and made sure that both of the person's attention was on each other.

"DiNozzo. I'm not planning on telling you what you should do because it's not my business. Just think about it hard, though, before you make a decision. Officially, I will say though, that I do not think you should leave the most firm thing you have had in your life to date, NCIS. However it is clearly your choice."

"What about unofficially, boss?" Gibbs smiled and decided to humour Tony.

"Unofficially, I can say that your not leaving NCIS…whether you want to or not." Tony belly-laughed and sat back in his seat, a little more reassured. "I don't think I could handle Ziva or McGee as my lead Agent."

The two co-worker's and friends laughed together, clinking the bottle of beer and bourbon together in toast.

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Review please. It means a lot :)

Leigh...Your Author.


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